The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller Home Price Index of 20 cities showed Tuesday, April 27, that prices in February were down 0.1% from January on a seasonally adjusted basis. But the reading was mixed as the 20-city index also showed a 0.6% increase from February of last year. That was the first yearly increase since December 2006, though 11 out of 20 cities posted losses over the year.
“These data point to a risk that home prices could decline further before experiencing any sustained gains,” David M. Blitzer, chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poor’s, said in a statement. “It is too early to say that the housing market is recovering.”
The index is compiled by the Federal Housing Finance Agency and uses data from mortgages that have been sold to or guaranteed by the government-controlled mortgage holding companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.